Keeping time and place in mind on the internet.

Monday, August 25th, 2008
by Mark Carras

So this is something I have recently noticed is starting to happen way more often on the internet. Remember when grandpa told you that there was a time and place for everything, but this is not that time? Well this should go for the internet as well. There is one specific internet friend of mine that can’t seem to grasp this at all. I don’t want to point this person out because I don’t want them to feel bad. I just want them to stop doing it. So maybe they will read this, think about it, and stop doing it, without ever knowing this rant was inspired by them.

So imagine you are making a post about a local daycare burning down and trying to help one of the families victimized by this tragic event. Would it be right to correct the spelling or grammar in a reply or comment? Now of course this is a drastic example, but the point is the same.

What if I want to know how many people love a tv show I recently discovered, but I don’t want to bait everyone by asking the question directly. So instead of saying “How many fans of Big Bang Theory are there?” I ask “List your top five tv shows” and see how many answer with Big Bang Theory. It would still be bad form to correct the spelling or grammar in a reply or comment. It would also be rude to accuse the person of asking the question for the sake of getting a ton of replies. You do not know why the question was asked and you just derailed the conversation. It’s called a hijack and it is very rude. If you really feel the person is doing something immoral, contact them one on one instead of posting anything off topic.

Now I am not saying you can’t debate, disagree, or discuss if the person posts something like “I am going to go buy some tomatoes from this guy across the street that just happens to be a child molester.” Or “I love Wal-Mart. They are so great for a community.” Or even “Damn that McDonald’s sure is healthy to eat everyday!”  If you post something on an internet forum, blog, or chat room, you damn well better expect some discussion. If this offends you, then you are a stupid twat and just need to be bitch slapped. Just stay on topic and respect the person who started the thread.

The whole point of this post is to stay on topic. If you have something that you feel you need to say to the person who started a thread, do it outside of that post. Don’t hijack the thread. It’s rude.